Frijoles: Some hits, some misses at Tokyo's new burrito bar
No messing about, you immediately line up to get a burrito or tacos made just to your liking. Ask for both cheese and sour cream if you are dairy-crazed.Frijoles -- the brand new burrito bar in posh Azabu-Juban -- is the perfect embodiment of Japan-does-the-West. The food itself is straight West Coast gangsta, and yet the presentation is basically a nerdy detail-obsessed recreation of Cucina Norteamericana (don't kid yourself: burritos and most variants of 'Mexican food' are a wholly American thing).
The good news is that all of Frijoles' taco selections are on-point, in particular the adobo chicken tacos and the steak tacos (the vegetarian option is quite good, as well, a nice departure from the usual mediocre slop aimed at vegetarians as an 'option' in Tokyo). This being said, the burritos miss the mark a bit, primarily due to the use of straight white rice without any flavoring and dumbing down the flavors to the level of the dubious wrap craze that has taken America by storm.
The salsa selection
The other strong suit that Frijoles offers is the red arbol salsa -- a true inducer of the 'ring of fire.' It's fierce, tangy and indomitable. Even if not a spice jock, this is the way to go when ordering. The tomatillo salsa is relatively bland, the corn salsa bewilders in its oniony-ness and the salsa fresca tastes like watery gazpacho. You gotta go big or go home. The guacamole is decent, however, though again suffers from a lack of salt. That being said, it is made from actual chunky, creamy avocados and a healthy dose of red onion.
The tortilla chips are also a strange mix. They are decent, but more like fried wonton chips than Tostitos. The salsa is a bit bland though, so there is much room for improvement here.
This leaves us with the overall strategy: Grab yourself some chicken tacos, which beat Junkadelic and every other "Mexican" place in Tokyo proper with a stick, (though if you are looking for baked treats such as enchiladas, head to Yokohama's World Porters building and the all-you-can-eat salsa and tortilla bar within).
Other pluses: Trilingual staff, super-friendly -- and they have root beer, another Mexican tradition!
Frijoles: Azabu-Juban 2-3-5, Minato-ku, tel. 03 6459 4095, www.frijoles.jp, 11am-10pm, closed second Monday of month.
